When the time came to rid the pride of certain lions, Ajal was involved a number of
times. His most notable, however, was the death of the dream lionesses. He was one
of the various lions sent to kill them whilst they slept. Ajal did not agree with it then,
and he does not agree with it now - but that doesn't mean that he was unafraid of the
alpha and what would be done if he disobeyed. Ajal himself almost killed one of the
lionesses, but let her escape.
As for when the lake cubs and their families were thrown into the waters, Ajal would
have no part of it. He made himself scarce during the whole event, for he couldn't sto-
mach the fact that there were cubs among the group, and they would be slaughtered
with the rest of them.
Even so, these deaths are what drove him to become a 'spy' of sorts for the rebels.
Silently, Ajal made his way around the rocks, keeping low enough so that his belly fur brushed the grass beneath him. Glowing eyes roved about, and then, muscles tensing, he gazed into the maw of a stone den. Several other lions brushed at his sides, their coats and markings all mashing together, and yet they were hidden by the darkness. Ajal presumed it was the work of an element, but he couldn’t be sure. Although, such thoughts were certainly not the task at hand. Closing his eyes momentarily and clearing his mind, Ajal began to think of what he had been told to do by his leader.
Kill the dream lionesses.
At first, he had been unsure. But under the guidance – and intimidation – of a lion exuding power, Ajal obeyed, joining the small group that was to help rid of the lionesses. Rid of. The words didn’t sit well with him. Murder is what it was. That thought made his fur crawl. Nevertheless, he was just being the coward he had always been; afraid of those more powerful than him. Even though one of his elements was death itself, and he had so much power welling within him, Ajal had little to no confidence in himself.
“Move forward!” One of the lions to his right hissed, albeit in a quiet tone, slinking forward. “And kill quickly. Do not allow them to fight back.” Ajal moved as one with the group, and in a few moments, they had taken to the awning of the den. Each separated to go their own way, to find a lioness of their own to kill. Then, in one movement, the group descended upon the lionesses.
Ajal didn’t see the first lioness go down, but he could smell her blood. Turning his head ever so slightly, he met eyes with the oldest of the dream lionesses, the life seeming to fade from her eyes. She looked at him in anguish. Lunaria – that was her name. Sorrow descended upon Ajal once he realized that she had no time to react, as one of the others had been upon her as soon as her head rose.
Pushed by the handful of lions surrounding him, Ajal continued on, for there was nothing else to do. He didn’t want to watch Lunaria’s life drain from her body, for he knew that he would lose what little motivation he had. And so, halfheartedly, Ajal went about, doing the task he had been ordered to do.
The next lioness he saw go down was Nisanyafia. She had risen from her sleep like a mad-lion, fury written across her features. Then, like a crazed animal she lunged forward, claws unsheathed and bright green eyes blazing. Ajal turned to meet her, rising up to meet her mid-way. Their bodies crashed, and the impact caused the lion to stumble away from the furious lioness. Although, before he could get a strike in, another assassin bumbled over and began to wrestle with Nisanyafia.
Ajal turned, and as a sorrowful cry rose into the air, he knew that Nisanyafia was done for. From the corner of his eye, Ajal had seen the lion take a swipe at her eyes, fully intending to blind her. Ajal turned further and could no longer look on.
Ajal’s paws took him further along this already bloodied path.
The last lioness he had come across had just risen from her sleep, seemingly disturbed. Ajal moved his head from side to side, praying that some other lion would come to take care of her. Alas, there were none to do such a duty. That meant that he must kill her himself.
Muscles coiling beneath him, he launched forward, claws extended and paws splayed. The lioness, who he remembered as Iokaste, rolled to the side, avoiding his touch. Ajal gave off a grunt as he landed, realizing that this lioness knew what his element was.
Death.
He spun to meet her, but he was too slow, and he could feel claws raking down his side. Roaring in fury, he reared up, slashed at the lioness. She too was surprised, and ramped up on her back legs, attempting to avoid his blow. Iokaste did not move quickly enough, and so Ajal’s claws met her snout with a resounding slap. That was when he chose to use his element.
And yet, in that split moment, Ajal hesitated. He could’ve used his power to its full extent, enough to kill Iokaste by shutting down her organs one by one. His element, instead, came at a weak pulse. It was enough to disorient her, for she stumbled back, but it was not a blow meant to kill. At most, she would experience great fatigue, but it was something that would heal over time. Slowly, Ajal dropped to his paws, moving no further.
He couldn’t do this, and Iokaste saw that too. She took one glance at him, the wound on her maw stinging, and then fled off into the night.
Ajal stood there, as still as a stone. Paws numb, he eventually turned and began to make his way back to the others that had killed the rest of the dreamers. Another lion met him, their fur standing on end. Curious, they gazed at the sullen Ajal.
“Most of them are now dead,” the near stranger began, voice quiet. “Did you kill that one?” Seeing that his question wasn’t going to be answered anytime soon, he skirted around Ajal and stalked over to where Iokaste’s body should have been. Upon finding no body, he turned on Ajal, anger clear on his face.
“You let her get away!” He crowed, stepping forward and forcing Ajal backwards. “You coward! That was your one job, and you could not do it? Disgraceful! Why, I should–” The lion talked no further, for Ajal had had enough. Complaining about not being able to kill another lion? Now that was disgraceful.
Instead of expressing his disdain within words, Ajal pounced, silent rage written in his eyes. Claws raking across the other lions face, he snarled, twisting until the two of them where writhing on the ground. The others present watched in horror and in surprise, making no move to separate the two lions. Ajal’s opponent attempted to let loose his elemental powers, but this time, Ajal was quicker. Power surged through his paws, seeping into the wounds running along the lions face.
Realizing what he had done, Ajal scrambled off of the other lion. The lion convulsed, stumbling about – dazed and confused. That was when the others began to move, began to summon their own elements. Ajal took that as his cue to leave. The lingering feeling of death crept back beneath his fur, and a lighter sensation across. Hissing, a sudden bright light filled the area, blinding all but Ajal.
And, just like that, Ajal bounded off into the night. No longer would he follow this tyrannical rule. No longer would he be a coward. From now on, he would make his own decisions, even after his alpha found out and he was punished for slaughtering a fellow soldier.
